The Beast Within

Chapter 3

- Emily's Point of View -

I RESTED BY a stream, tossing my duffle bag to the side. I had made sure to bring only the things I couldn't live without, other things I would have to get by without or would have to find a substitute for. I brought along my weapon, which was a knife I had been given when I started my training. As an assassin, we were taught that anything could be as deadly as we wanted it to be. A knife was all we needed to take down our targets, without having to carry a bigger, more bulky weapon such as a sword or a bow. Knives were light weight, easy to carry and could be hidden easily.

I also brought along a portable tent to protect from the weather, a couple towels, a bedroll, some dried venison I had stolen from the Alpha's private storage, some gold I took from the Camp's storage, salt which I could use to cure meat from animals I kill for food, a book on herbs of the wilderness, which could come in handy in quick situations. Especially medical herbs. And a few pairs of clothes. That was all I could stuff into the bag. The tent took up most of the room.
I cupped my hands together and scooped up some water from the stream. I gulped it down, hoping to moisturize my dry throat. My sides were heaving from running. I had to run in order to put distance between me and the Clan, distance between me and the Alpha... distance between me and Eli.

It hit me. I was alone now. Truly alone. Back in the Camp I at least had Eli. Though we had showed little signs of interaction with each other than the occasional conversation and the missions we were sent on, he was still a person. I had to admit, Eli did know me better than anyone. We had been partnered together since my seventh birthday. The day I pledged myself against emotions... You start your training at seven. That way you are young enough to be led on to believe that any emotion would get you killed, that any sign of emotion was a weakness. Sometimes you have to wait a year or two to be paired with a partner. I was lucky to receive mine when I first started.

I sighed and looked at my reflection in the stream. My hair - complete with tangles, leaves and twigs - looked like a brown bush. My eyes, matching the color of the pine trees surrounding the area, shimmered with exhaustion and were starting to droop. I had a white scar running along my left jaw line that I had received during a training incident when Eli had clipped me with one of his knives.

I began to remove the mess from my poor hair, tossing it aside. Why? Because even though no one was around to see what I looked like (not that I cared for other's opinions of me anyway), it was bothersome to have all that stuff stuck in my hair. I could feel the twigs scraping against my scalp.

I slowly removed the cuirass of my armor, sliding the bracers off. My breasts bounced against my body, glad to be free from the tight leather. I then removed the chausses and greaves, tossing them over with the rest of my armor. I continued until I had stripped every inch of armor off. I grabbed a bar of soap from the duffle bag and waded into the stream, feeling the cool water lapping against my skin. I bent down, allowing the water to cover my whole body - short of my head. I dampened the bar of soap and began cleaning myself off.

...

After I was finished cleaning and pulling the rest of the mess out of my hair, I stepped out of the water. I shivered, the cold air hitting my nude body. It was late and the sun was beginning to disappear below the horizon. I decided it was best to pitch camp by the stream and rest up. I set my armor in a pile off of the duffle bag and rummaged through it until I found a towel. I had really made sure I packed what I needed before I left the Clan. It caused quite a bit of weight to carry, but it was the smart thing to do. I dried off before sliding some clothes on. An old gray sweater and pants. Not much but at least it would keep me warm.

This isn't so bad. I thought to myself as I got dressed. As long as none of the Clan catches up to me. As long as I keep putting distance between us. I brought out a piece of dried venison from a plastic baggie and snacked on it, dusting the salt off of my hands.